


Take Care Of Me (Cause I Won't)

by De_Marvel_Bunny



Series: Whumptober 2019 [23]
Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - No Powers, BAMF Tony Stark, Concerned Steve Rogers, Hurt Tony Stark, M/M, Protective Steve Rogers, Self-Destructive Tony Stark, Sleepy Tony Stark, Tony Stark Feels, Tony Stark Gets a Hug, Tony Stark Has Issues, Tony Stark Is Not Helping, Tony Stark Needs Sleep, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Tony Stark-centric, Whumptober, Whumptober 2019, why isn't that a tag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-23
Updated: 2019-10-23
Packaged: 2021-01-01 22:00:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,197
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21150362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/De_Marvel_Bunny/pseuds/De_Marvel_Bunny
Summary: When Steve gets out of work late and runs into a self-destructive, sleep deprived Tony Stark, he can't help his instincts to take care of him. It's a good thing he's cute.





	Take Care Of Me (Cause I Won't)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kcusllay](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kcusllay/gifts), [The_Sad_Fangirl](https://archiveofourown.org/users/The_Sad_Fangirl/gifts).

> I gotta be honest here, I don't even know what this stuff is anymore

Steve walks home through the dark, breathing in the crisp night air and enjoying the silence the night brought. Well, relative silence- it was never truly _silent_ in New York, after all.

He'd worked the night shift at work today, as he'd been struggling to keep up with the rent. It wasn't a bad thing, per se. Steve enjoyed his work. But it meant he was off work late, and it made his days a little more hectic.

He passed a 24-hour store, the bright lights of the 'open' sign catching his attention. Come to think of it, it wouldn't hurt to get some extra supplies in. He entered the small stop, smiling kindly at the woman falling asleep behind the counter. He was barely even inside, when he heard a crashing sound, followed by a few mumbled curses. Curious, and slightly concerned, Steve walked over to the direction of the noise.

He saw a young (cute) man kneeling on the ground, struggling to pick up what he'd dropped with one hand while he clutched the other to his chest.

"Excuse me," Steve called. "Can I help you?"

The man jumped up, clearly startled, turning to face Steve. Steve's breath caught in his throat.

The man was small, his height slightly below average. His brown hair was a mess (though Steve thought it looked cute), and the hoodie he was wearing was slightly oversized. But more importantly, his arm, which had been clutched to his chest protectively, was bloody, his wrist looking slightly swollen and glass poking out of the sleeve. Looking up, Steve spotted a black eye and some small, glass shards in the soft flesh on the side of his face. His brown eyes were blown wide, although there was a hint of exhaustion in them.

"Uh, I, uh," he stuttered, clearly at a loss of words. "Y-yeah, that'd..." he sighed, looking down at the mess on the floor. "That'd be great, actually."

Steve, not really knowing what else to do, simply bent down at the knees to pick up the man's mess, deciding to carry it himself instead of handing it over.

"I'm Steve," he said, extending a hand.

"Tony," the man answered, his hand rough in Steve's.

"How did... _that_ happen?" Steve asked hesitantly, gesturing to the man's, Tony's, injuries.

"Oh, those?" Tony laughed awkwardly. "Well, I was working in the lab, wasn't really paying attention and for some reason it blew up," he shrugged.

"What were you working on?" Steve asked, concern growing.

"Oh, just-" Tony paused, gaze distant. He remained silent for a moment and Steve was beginning to think he'd fallen asleep on his feet when his eyes snapped up to Steve's again. "You know what, I don't even remember."

Okay, _now_ Steve was concerned.

"When's the last time you slept?"

Tony shrugged.

"I dunno, sleep's for the weak. Anyway, could I get that back, please? I got some glass I seem to have misplaced and I'd like to clean it up." He held out a hand for the products, first aid, Steve noted, his hand shaking slightly.

"Oh, no," Steve stopped him, holding the kit out of his reach. "You're not doing that yourself, especially with shaking hands like those. Why don't you have a kit at home, anyway?"

"They've been running out quick," Tony shrugged again like it was no big deal.

"Okay," Steve blew some air out of his cheeks. "Okay, that's... that's concerning. How about this: I patch you up, and you sleep for at least eight hours tonight," he proposed. Tony's eyes widened.

_"Eight hours?!"_ He exclaimed. "How do you expect me to sleep for _eight hours_? No one sleeps _that_ long!"

"No, normal people sleep that long. Healthy people," Steve objected, already walking over to the front desk to check out. "And I'd like you to be healthy, thank you."

"Why?" Tony asked, scoffing. "You've only _just_ met me."

"Well, can't I care?" Steve asked, frowning. Tony raised his uninjured hand in surrender.

"Hey, no need to take it like that," he said. "I just mean that you don't _have_ to. I'd be fine on my own, you know? I always have been."

"...Always?" Steve repeated hesitantly. Tony rolled his eyes, pushing past him to pay for the first-aid kit.

"Yes, always. That's what I said." He paid for the kit, saluting the girl behind the counter before stepping out of the store. "Well, nice meeting you, Steve. Have a good day- night. Have a good night- wait, since when is it _night_?!"

"Okay, a-again- _that's_ really concerning," Steve frowned. "Also, have you forgotten what I said literally two minutes ago? I take care of you, you get some sleep."

"Seems like a lose-lose to me," Tony muttered. "Since I don't want to do either of those things."

"Where do you live?" Steve asked, ignoring Tony's comment.

"Upstate."

"...We're in Brooklyn."

"Oh," Tony paused. "Well, that's gonna be a long walk then," he shrugged. Steve groaned, resisting the urge to face-palm.

"Or," he said very slowly, looking Tony in the eyes. "I take you to my apartment, so I can fix you up and make sure you don't die on the way home. You can get some sleep there, seem like a good idea?"

Tony blinked owlishly up at him.

"...Sure."

Later, Steve would be concerned at how easy it was to get Tony to go to some random stranger's place, but for now, he was just glad the man wasn't protesting. He walked him to his apartment nearby, keeping one eye on the man at all times. When they got there, Steve gently led Tony over to the bed, getting out his more sophisticated medical supplies before getting to work. Tony was silent while he worked, watching Steve's movements with intelligent eyes. The silence wasn't uncomfortable.

"This is all I can do for you for now," Steve said softly, not wanting to break the comfortable atmosphere they'd drifted into. Tony nodded, his movements a bit sluggish. "I'd recommend going to a hospital tomorrow, though."

"M'kay," was all Tony said. Steve was about to step away, when he noticed Tony had begun to lean into him, exhaustion getting the better of him. So Steve stayed where he was, running his hands over the man's back like his mother used to do to soothe him to sleep. Tony's eyes fluttered shut, his head leaning on Steve's shoulder. At some point, Steve shifted until he was sitting beside the man on the bed, allowing him to lean into his side. His hand had slipped into Tony's soft curls, massaging his scalp. When Tony was completely limp against him, and Steve was sure he wasn't going to wake up, Steve gently lowered him down onto the bed, unable to resist tucking him in.

He smiled at the man's sleeping form, already knowing he was in too deep and way in over his head. But watching Tony's chest rise and fall slowly, his breathing soft and slow, Steve found he didn't really mind at all. 

He cleaned up his tools, putting them away softly before getting ready for the night. He wouldn't mind sleeping on the couch tonight.

**Author's Note:**

> What have I gotten myself into, I haven't watched a movie by myself in ages because of this series...
> 
> Gimme sum comments and Kudos to make my suffering worth it :)


End file.
